The Unit Economics and Scaling of Data

  There are several paragraphs of text here, but the “tldr” is that although many systems increase in value dramatically in a superlinear manner with increasing scale, such as when there are economies of scale or network effects, we should be mindful that typically the value of data scales in a sublinear, logarithmic way.  If …

What camera should I buy? Or a self-study curriculum of introductory books for photography beginners

This is an overview of a proposed self-study curriculum and reading list to teach the fundamentals of photography. I am a student of visual art and photography, and people often ask me "What camera should I buy." My answer is almost uniformly, "Don't buy a new camera, your phone is already more than you need, just …

My experience with abortions

On my OB Gyn rotation, an optional component is being able to observe during terminations of pregnancies.  Because this is such a controversial topic, I thought others might be interested in reading about my experiences.  I wrote these thoughts down several years ago, and I recently found them again: First, to give some background, one …

Vaccination Thoughts on Labor and Delivery

I wrote this down a long time ago when I was doing an obstetrics rotation in medical school.  For this rotation, I had to do overnights in the Labor & Delivery unit, hanging around waiting for babies to be born to then run over and try to help deliver the baby, so I had some …

Battle of the Kimchi; Hipster vs Korean Grocery

Kimchi is a living things, so it can vary quite a bit over time, even from a careful maker.  However, I thought I would compare the kimchi made by artisanal foodie hipsters (Farmhouse Culture) vs standard kimchi sold in the Korean grocery store. Now, is it fair to call the Farmhouse Culture team artisanal foodie …

Some tasty fusion treats in Honolulu

I particularly enjoy in Hawaii as I really like the fusion of Japanese techniques and Polynesian ingredients, and there are many other fusion influences (Portuguese, American, Filipino, etc.), so I thought I'd go through some of the unique and very delicious things you can get there. First, Chef Morimoto is a celebrity chef known for starring …

Ippudo Ramen, Westside, NYC

I finally got to try the Westside branch of Ippudo in NYC.   Ippudo, a branch of a chain from Japan, has had a location down in the East Village for years, and it was one of my most favorite ramen places.  It has been a bit of a "scene," with an active bar area with …

Ajisen Ramen, Westfield Mall, SF

Down in the food court in the lower level of the Westfield mall in San Francisco, facing the south side of Market, there is Ajisen Ramen. It's an underground food court, but the ramen place has it's own seating area (not the communal food court seating), so I guess everyone in your party has to …

Noraneko Ramen, Portland, OR

Norneko Ramen is a somewhat hard to find, but tasty place in Portland.  It's by the people who started Biwa, and has some of the really delicious chicken karaage on the menu.  The fried chicken is a definite recommend here.  It has a lot of the Portland-hipster feel with nice wood, but something about the …

Umami Burger, Pickle Plate – again

I mentioned the Umami Burger pickle plate  in a previous post. I visited the location in San Francisco this time and tried the pickle plate.  The carrots and cucumbers were good.  I was less enthusiastic about the other pickles.  I don't even remember what they were now.  However,  I thought I would share the photo for …